Event Comment: The Duke's Company. This performance is on the L. C. list at Harvard. See VanLennep, "Plays on the English Stage," p. 13. Diary of Richard Boyle, Earl of Burlington: Heer dined with mee my lord of Canterbury my ld Sandwich and my brother and sister Orrery, and in the afternoone wee all went but his Grace to see my brothers new play cald Tryphon which was much applauded (Volume IV, in the Library at Chatsworth. This excerpt supplied by Kathleen Lynch). Pepys, Diary: My wife tells me of my Lord Orrery's new play "Tryphon," at the Duke of York's house...and [we] went thither, where, with much ado, at half-past one, we got into a blind hole in the 18d. place, above stairs, where we could not hear well, but the house infinite full, but the prologue most silly, and the play, though admirable, yet no pleasure almost in it, because just the very same design, and words, and sense, and plot, as every one of his plays have, any one of which alone would be held admirable, whereas so many of the same design and fancy do but dull one another; and this, I preceive, is the sense of every body else, as well as myself, who therefore showed but little pleasure in it

Event Comment: The Duke's Company. This play is on the L. C. list at Harvard. See VanLennep, "Plays on the English Stage," p. 13. Pepys, Diary: To the Duke's playhouse, and saw Macbeth. The King and Court there; and we sat just under them and my Lady Castlemayne, and close to the woman that comes into the pit, a kind of a loose gossip, that pretends to be like her, and is so, something...The King and Duke of York minded me, and smiled upon me, at the handsome woman near me: but it vexed me to see Moll Davis, in the box over the King's and my Lady Castlemayne's head, look down upon the King, and he up to her; and so did my Lady Castlemayne once, to see who it was; but when she saw her, she looked like fire; which troubled me

Event Comment: The Duke's Company. This performance is on the L. C. list at Harvard: the King and Queen [present]. See VanLennep, "Plays on the English Stage," p. 13

Event Comment: Newsletter, 5 Jan.: Copies of a malicious comedy called Pluto, reflecting on several persons of honour, have been taken. It was to have been acted within the prison of the King's Bench (HMC, 12th Report, Part VII, p. 61). The play was published in Amsterdam in 1669 with the title: Pluto furens & vinctus; or, The raging devil bound. The Dedication speaks of it as being suitable for performance by schoolboys during the holidays. The edition has a Prologue and an Epilogue but no actors' names

Event Comment: In L. C. 5@12, p. 212, is a list of plays formerly acted at Blackfriars and now allowed (ca. 12 Jan. 1668@9) to the King's Company: Everyman in his Humour. Everyman out of his Humour. Cyntheas Revells. Sejanus. The ffox. The Silent Weoman. The Alchymist. Catilin. Bartholomew ffayre. Staple of Newes. The Devills an Asse. Magnitick Lady [The Humours Reconciled]. Tale of a Tubb. New Inn [or The Light of Heart]. Beggers Bush [by John Fletcher, with Philip Massinger?]. Bonduca. Custome of ye Country. The Captaine. The Chances. The Coxcombe. The Double Marriage. The ffrench Lawyer. The ffalse One. The fayre Mayd of ye Inn. The Humorous Leivt. The Island Princes. The Knights of Malta. Nathan Field. The Loyall Subject. The Lawes of Candye. Loves Progresse [The Lover's Progress; or, The Wandering Lovers. The Winters Tale. King John. Richard the Second. Loues Cure [or The Martial Maid]. Loues Pilgrimage. The Noble Gentlemen. The Nice Valour [or, The Passionate Madman]. The Prophetesse. The Marshall Mayd [see Love's Cure]. The Pilgrim. The Queene of Corinth. The Spanish Curate. The Sea Voyage. Valentinian. The Weomans Prize [or, The Tamer Tamed]. A Wife for a Moneth. The Wyd Goose-Chase. The Elder Brother. The ffaythfull Shepherdesse. A King & noe King. The Maydes Tragedie. Phylaster. Rollo Duke of Normandy [or, The Bloody Brother]. The Scornefull Lady. Thiery & Theodorat. Rule a Wife. The Gentlemen of Verona. The Merry Wives of Windsor. The Comoedy of Errors. Loves Labour Lost. Midsomer Nights Dreame. The Merchant of Venice. As you like it. The Tameing of ye Shrew. Alls well yt ends well. Henry ye fourth. The Second part Henry IV. The Royall Slaue

Event Comment: The King's Company. Pepys, Diary: To the King's playhouse, and there,--in an upper box...did see The Moor of Venice: but ill-acted in most parts; Mohun, which did a little surprise me, not acting Iago's part by much so well as Clun used to do; nor another Hart's, which was Cassio's; nor, indeed, Burt doing the Moor's so well as I once thought he did

Event Comment: The Duke's Company. This performance is on the L. C. list at Harvard. See VanLennep, "Plays on the English Stage," p. 14. Pepys, Diary: My wife and I to White Hall; and there, by means of Mr Cooling, did get into the play, the only one we have seen this winter: it was The Five Hours' Adventure: but I sat so far I could not hear well, nor was there any pretty woman that I did see, but my wife, who sat in my Lady Fox's pew with her. The house very full; and late before done, so that it was past eleven before we got home

Event Comment: The King's Company. See 3 March 1668@9 for another play acted(on a Wednesday in Lent by the young players. Langbaine, (English Dramatick Poets, p. 208): Coxcomb, a Comedy, which was reviv'd at the Theatre-Royal, the Prologue being spoken by Jo. Haines. Pepys, Diary: To the King's playhouse, and there saw The Coxcomb, the first time acted, but an old play, and a silly one, being acted only by the young people

Event Comment: The Travels of Cosmo the Third [Tuesday 30 April 1669 NS; Tuesday 20 April 1669 OS]: This day, his highness went to the comedy at the Duke of York's theatre, where the music and dancing, after the English manner, were less pleasing than the operas performed by the comedians; because, being in the English language, the only pleasure which we who heard them, can derive from the latter, is that of observing their action, which it cannot be denied, was supereminently excellent (London, 1821, p. 194)

Event Comment: The King's Company. Pepys, Diary: To the King's house, and there saw The General revived--a good play, that pleases me well. The Travels of Cosmo the Third [4 May 1669 NS; 24 April 1699 OS]: [On 4 May and the two subsequent days His Highness received callers] and many of them remained to dine with his highness, who continued on each of these days his visits to the ladies, appearing at Hyde Park, at the comedies, sometimes at the king's theatre, sometimes at that of the duke's theatre (p. 195)

Event Comment: The Duke's Company. Although this performance is not certainly the premiere, it is the earliest known acting of the play. This performance is on the L. C. lists at Harvard. See VanLennep, "Plays on the English Stage", p. 14. John Boyle, Fifth Earl of Orrery: Master Anthony too the sequel of Guzman was after Lord Orrery's Death brought upon the Stage, but being disrelish'd by the Audience appear'd only one Night. It is probable The Author had not supervis'd and corrected It sufficiently before he died (The Dramatic Works of Roger Boyle, ed. W. S. Clark II, II, 950). If these private notes, written some fifty years after the premiere, are correct, this performance may have been the premiere and the only day of acting it

Event Comment: Newsletter, 7 April: Last evening their Majesties were diverted with a comedy acted at St James's by the little young ladies of the Court, who appeared extraordinarily glorious and covered with jewels (HMC, Fleming MSS. 12th Report, VII, 70). This may have been a performance of The Faithful Shepherdess which was entered by Richard Boyle, Earl of Burlington, in his diary, 2 April 1670 [error for 6 April (?)]: I saw Lady Mary, daughter of the Duke of York, and many young ladies act the Faithful Shepherdess very finely (Diary, Volume V, in Chatsworth. I owe this entry to Professor Kathleen Lynch). In Covent Garden Drollery, 1672 (ed. G. Thorn-Drury), p. 68, is an Epilogue spoken by the Lady Mary Mordaunt, before the King and Queen at court, to the Faithful Shepherdess. As Lady Mary was then about twelve, this Epilogue seems to confirm the possibility that the play was The Faithful Shepherdess acted by amateurs